It's Valentine's Day!
by musicgal3
Summary: ...the worst day of the year, according to Elphaba Thropp. But that all changes when she receives an anonymous note. Shiz-era, AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's**** Note:**** Yes, you read the summary right - this is NOT a one-shot; in fact, it is my FIRST EVER completed Wicked multichap! YAY!**

**I first got the idea for this story a few days after Valentine's Day last year, but I couldn't get past the first paragraph of chapter two. So it became one of the many temporarily-abandoned stories I have floating around my laptop.**

**And then in October, I managed to write a sentence. One single sentence, and suddenly, BOOM! - I'd written an entire story! I had so much fun writing this, and I hope you enjoy reading it! :)**

**And Happy Valentine's Day/Single's Awareness Day/whatever you do or don't celebrate! 3**

**Elizabeth. xx**

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><p><span><strong>It's Valentine's Day!<strong>

**CHAPTER 1:**

An ear-splitting shriek cut through the early morning tranquillity.

Elphaba Thropp bolted upright in bed and immediately glanced over at the other side of the room. "Galinda, are you alright?" she asked in concern, before her mind registered that her friend's bed was empty. "Galinda?" she questioned, looking around the room until her eyes fell on Galinda's slight figure standing by the window. The light streamed through the open curtains, giving Galinda an almost ethereal appearance.

Galinda turned around, a huge grin plastered across her face. "It's Valentine's Day!"

"Oh, is that all?" Elphaba muttered, lying back down and closing her eyes.

Galinda let out an audible gasp of horror and bounded over to Elphaba's bed. "What do you _mean_, 'is that all'? Valentine's Day is an important personal and social event! It is the one day of the year desiccated –"

"Designated," Elphaba corrected tiredly.

"– for everyone to show their love! It's HUGE! It's THE best day of the year! Well, aside from my Birthday, that is!" Galinda let out a shrill giggle, before her mouth turned down slightly at the sight of Elphaba feigning sleep. "Oh, honestly, Elphie, can't you at least _look_ excited?"

Elphaba cracked an eye open to glare at her friend. "Why should I? Valentine's Day is nothing but one day of the year designated to…"

Galinda put her dainty hands on her hips challengingly. "To what? See, you can't even think up an argument!"

_To make my life hell._ "I was making sure I was about to use words you can understand. It's the one day of the year designated to over-excite already-over-excited couples and depress already-depressed single people. A day designated for everyone to decorate everything in sickening shades of pink and red; plaster loveheart shapes over every inch of available surface of _everything_; fill stores with teddy bears and with chocolates in ostentatious-looking loveheart-shaped boxes; and give the florists a roaring trade. A day designated for me to be sickened by listening to everyone being sappy and 'romantic'" – Elphaba put the latter word in air quotes with her fingers – "and to give everyone yet another excuse to organize dances and write pointless, sappy poetry."

Galinda crossed her arms and glared back at Elphaba. "Are you quite finished ruining my ideas about Valentine's Day?"

Elphaba shrugged. "It's just how I see it."

"Well, you're the only one," Galinda told her, turning up her little nose.

Elphaba shrugged and turned over. "Suits me fine," she muttered, closing her eyes once more.

Galinda sighed and walked over to her wardrobe. "Now, what to wear, what to wear…hmmm…" Galinda quietly selected her (pink) outfit for the day and went about her involved morning routine.

Just as Galinda clipped on her second earring, there was a knock on the door. "I'll get it!" she called – quite unnecessarily, as she was right beside the door and Elphaba was still in bed.

"Oh, for goodness' sake!" Elphaba exclaimed, squinting at her clock. "It's seven o'clock! Who in the world would want to venture into the Lioness' den at seven o'clock in the bleeding morning?"

"No-one will come in; it will be a delivery, dear!" Galinda replied chirpily. With a dramatic sweep of her arm, Galinda flung open the door and beamed at the sight awaiting her. "Oh, how sweet! Thankyou!" Galinda took the extravagant bouquet of dark pink roses from the delivery man and bestowed upon him a brilliant smile. "Oh, and a gift box, too! And a teddy bear! My, Fiyero certainly went all-out this year!" Galinda giggled as she signed for the gifts and took them from the man, who then presented her with a single red rose, causing Galinda to gasp.

"I'm afraid you'll have to sign for this one separately for this one, ma'am," the delivery man said.

Galinda frowned, puzzled. "Why? It's from Fiyero, too, isn't it?"

"Is that who those ones are from?" the man queried, nodding at the gifts Galinda now held in her little arms.

"Yes," she affirmed.

"Then no, this is not from Fiyero."

"Oh. Well, okay, then." Galinda put down the gift box she held and reached for the pen once more to sign her name, before taking the rose from him and thanking him with her signature giggle.

The man began to move away, before he turned back, pulling an envelope out of his bag. "Oh, I almost forgot about this."

"Will I have to sign for that one, too?" Galinda asked.

"No, this one isn't for you."

"Then who…?" Galinda trailed off, her eyes widening in realization. "Oh, my Oz! Elphieeee!" she squealed.

"What?" came the reply, though it was more of a groan than an actual word.

"Elphie, it's for you!"

Elphaba raised her head and looked at Galinda in confusion. "What is?"

"This envelope."

"Wow, I got a whole envelope," Elphaba said sarcastically. "Empty, I presume?"

Galinda frowned as she examined the envelope. "I don't think so…" she said seriously, causing Elphaba to roll her eyes. "Anyway, you have to come over here to sign for it."

The delivery man cleared his throat. "Actually, envelopes don't have to be signed for _at all_."

"Oh. So, I could just…take it and give it to her?" Galinda asked.

The delivery man nodded. "It would be best if one of you takes it…because I have other deliveries to make."

"Great!" Galinda whisked the envelope from his hand and shut the door, barely pausing to call, "Oh, bye! Thankyou very much!" Galinda skipped over to her roommate's bed and dropped the envelope lightly onto Elphaba's side.

"Hey!" Elphaba protested, flinging her arm out to stop the envelope from slipping onto the floor. "You could have put it on my nightstand!"

"But then you wouldn't read it," Galinda argued, "and you must read it _now_."

"Why?" Elphaba asked. "It's still going to be there later, whether I choose it open it now or tonight. Or tomorrow, for that matter."

Galinda gaped at her friend. "But Elphie! You can't open it tomorrow! It must be opened _now_!"

"Why?" Elphaba repeated.

"Well, because…it's Valentine's Day! So that has to be a Valentine! And you can't not open a Valentine on Valentine's Day! Especially because then when you see whoever it was who sent it to you, you can't tell them that you didn't know they'd sent you anything because you were too lazy to open it because that would be rude!"

Elphaba regarded her friend doubtfully. "Galinda, there is no way this is going to be a Valentine. No-one even likes me, so why should anyone send me a Valentine? Unless it's a joke. Besides," she continued, waving the envelope around, "the envelope is white."

"So?"

"Well, aren't the envelopes usually red or pink for Valentine's Day?"

"Well…they probably know you don't like pink," Galinda concluded logically.

"And red?"

Exasperated, Galinda held out her hands. "Oh, just open it already!"

Heaving an exaggerated sigh, Elphaba complied. "I'm only doing this to satisfy your curiosity," she told Galinda as she opened the envelope. "I don't know why anyone would be sending me anything, but it's probably quite trivial." Elphaba extracted a small piece of plain notepaper and read the words with a raised eyebrow. Finally, she set the note aside.

"Well?" Galinda demanded impatiently.

"Well what?"

Galinda groaned. "Elphaba, you know what! What does it say?"

"Nothing important," Elphaba said, brushing it off.

"It must be important!" Galinda pressed. "Tell me!"

Elphaba shrugged. "If you're so interested, read it yourself."

Galinda snatched up the note and read it through, a grin lighting up her face. "I told you it would be a Valentine!"

"It's not a Valentine, Galinda," Elphaba retorted. "It's just a note."

"A _very_ _romantic_ note," Galinda corrected pointedly, "written in _calligraphy_. _That_ is romantic."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "You would think it romantic if a boy punched me in the face."

"I would not!" protested Galinda.

"My point is, the note is _not_ romantic. There is nothing romantic about this note. Creepy, yes. Romantic, no."

Nevertheless, Elphaba couldn't help but read over the note one more time after Galinda had huffed and flounced out of the room, announcing her intention to personally thank Fiyero for the gifts.

_On a day you don't celebrate,  
>This someone you hate,<br>But who doesn't hate you,  
>Needs to tell the truth.<br>To find out whom I be,  
>At noon stand under the acacia tree.<em>

She shook her head, dismissing the note. It was either the work of someone playing a cruel joke or that of a crackpot. Mostly likely, it was someone playing a joke. It would be better left ignored.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's**** Note: Thanks for all your reviews, follows and favs; they made me so, so happy! I love how everyone's assuming it's going to be a Fiyeraba. *evil laugh*  
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**Elphabalover101: I have to say, I loved your reaction to Chapter 3 of Happy Valentine's Day. **Your review made me laugh. :)** (Mini-plug: for those who don't know, the afore-mentioned story is Maddy and my latest joint venture.)**

**Here's the next instalment!**

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 2:<strong>

Nevertheless, noon that day found Elphaba standing underneath the acacia tree as instructed, feeling terribly foolish and wondering what in Oz possessed her to come here. She briefly contemplated turning on her heel and marching straight back to the cafeteria, but she found her feet were rooted to the spot. It seemed she didn't really want to leave, afterall. Elphaba had never considered herself a curious person, but she had to admit to herself that she was curious now. In all honesty, she didn't really expect any cute guys to come and tell her how she made them melt inside and ask her to be their girlfriend. She didn't really expect anything. The most she would get, Elphaba concluded, would be a bucket of cold water thrown over her head or some sort of attack from above. The thought prompted her to crane her neck upwards and suspiciously scan the tree for any signs of a nasty surprise, but there didn't appear to be anything there. Just as she turned away, her eye caught sight of something white tucked in amongst the leaves on one of the lower branches. Upon closer inspection, Elphaba realized it was an envelope – just like the one she had received that morning. Elphaba moved closer and stretched upwards, but she could not reach the envelope. She stood on tiptoe, but again to no avail. She jumped. Her fingertips brushed the envelope, but it was not enough. Whoever had put it up there, she concluded, must be rather tall. With a quick glance around to ensure no-one was watching, Elphaba hitched up her skirt somewhat and climbed up the tree trunk just far enough to allow her to grab the envelope. However, as she did so, she noticed there was something else with it. Elphaba stretched out her hand again and her fingers closed around a bunch of small, purple flowers. She stared at the flowers for a moment in surprise, before she jumped down from the tree and ran off towards her dormitory.

Once there, Elphaba proceeded to open the envelope. She extracted the small letter to find that it had been written in a similar format as the first.

_The emotion I'm feeling for you  
>Begins with the same letter as these flowers.<br>To find out more,  
>Be in the courtyard tomorrow at a certain hour<br>After a certain class –  
>Look near the grass.<em>

Elphaba lowered the letter and looked at the flowers. This one was going to be a tough one to crack. She knew a lot about the scientific side of plants, such as their life cycles, but she did not really know the names of flowers. All she knew was that they were pretty. Of course, she could identify the common flowers – roses, daisies, poppies – but when it came to the less popular flowers, especially ones that were similar to others…Elphaba was a bit lost. She was, however, pretty sure that these were violets…which made the clue that much more complicated. Afterall, what emotion began with a 'V'? Elphaba frowned, racking her brains for something, but nothing came.

Just then, Galinda burst through the door. "Hi, Elphie! How was your morning? Look what I – Oh!" she broke off with a soft gasp. "What beautiful lilacs! Where did you get them from? Oh," Galinda answered herself, spying the note in Elphaba's hands as she bounced over and picked up the lilacs, "did you go to the tree, afterall?"

"Uh, well, I –" This time it was Elphaba's turn to break off what she was saying. Her head shot up and her eyes narrowed at Galinda. "Wait, what did you just call those flowers?"

"Lilacs," Galinda chirped as she delicately sniffed said flowers.

Elphaba's face paled. "N-no," she stuttered, "th-they can't be…"

Galinda looked up and frowned at her friend. "They are. Why, what's wrong?"

"N-nothing," Elphaba managed.

Before Elphaba could protest, Galinda snatched the letter from Elphaba's hand and began to read. "Oh, Elphie, this is _so romantic_!" she squealed. "He loves you!"

If she was completely honest with herself, Elphaba was a bit shaken up at the thought, but there had to be another explanation. "That doesn't mean he loves me," she argued weakly. "He might just like me."

Galinda fixed Elphaba with a look and raised her eyebrow. "Elphie, he's already established that he likes you."

"When?" Elphaba demanded.

"In his first letter, he said he doesn't hate you. That's the same as him liking you, duh." Galinda rolled her eyes.

"Well, it could be something else, then."

"Such as?"

"Loyalty?" Elphaba wrinkled up her nose. "Okay, no, not loyalty. No-one's loyal to me."

"_I_ am!" Galinda protested.

"That's different." Elphaba sighed. "Ummm…"

"Face it, Elphie: he loves you."

"We don't even know who 'he' is!" Elphaba burst out in frustration. "How can I believe anyone loves me when I have no inkling as to who it could possibly be?"

Galinda smiled cheerfully. "That is why, Miss Elphaba, we are going to find out who it is."

"Oh, no, Galinda, no. I am _not_ going to spend all my time worrying about _this_," Elphaba said, gesturing to the note and the flowers.

"You don't _need_ to spend all your time worrying about it, silly," Galinda laughed, wrapping her arms around Elphaba's neck. "Just wait until tomorrow and then go to the courtyard."

"And what are you going to do in the meantime?" Elphaba asked knowingly.

"Why, Miss Elphaba, I don't know what you mean." Galinda giggled before hopping off the bed. "I'm going to class. Bye!"

"You're going to class?" Elphaba echoed disbelievingly as Galinda skipped out of the room.

"Of course! Bye, Elphie!"

Elphaba sighed as she got up to find something to put the lilacs in. Galinda wasn't going to let this go. Well, while ever Galinda was going to go off interrogating people as she was bound to do – Elphaba just hoped to goodness that Galinda would be tactful and not mention any names – perhaps Elphaba herself could do some sleuthing of her own. Though where she would start, she hadn't the faintest clue.

After eventually finding a deep mug of Galinda's to put the lilacs in, hoping that Galinda wouldn't mind – though Elphaba didn't particularly care if she did – she picked up the latest note again and scanned it once more. Perhaps there was some other sort of clue in there. Perhaps…no. Elphaba couldn't see anything else. Other than the request to be at the courtyard at a particular hour after class – but what particular hour? After which class? Elphaba didn't know of any time that had a special meaning associated with it. Maybe the 'certain class' part meant that whoever the letter-writer was, he shared the class with Elphaba. But that was still of no help; there were at least a dozen boys in each of her four classes the next day. Elphaba reached for the first note and went through it again, then laid the two notes side-by-side and compared them. She didn't get very far; they were written in a similar fashion on plain notepaper, and the handwriting was in a calligraphic style.

Handwriting.

A lightbulb clicked in Elphaba's head. Maybe she could narrow down her suspects by their handwriting. Okay, so no-one went around writing in calligraphy on a daily basis. But surely however could write like this usually wrote neatly in the first place, right? So all she had to do was look out for guys in her classes with neat handwriting. There couldn't be that many guys who actually bothered to write neatly. Maybe this would be easier than she thought.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's**** Note:**** Thanks again for your reviews. They really mean a lot to me. :) I'm quite proud of a certain part in this, which I'm sure you'll all be able to pick up. Enjoy!  
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><p><strong>CHAPTER 3:<strong>

The next day, Elphaba resolved to look at the handwriting of as many guys as possible. It was only as she entered her first class, however, that she realized how difficult a task that would be, considering Elphaba always sat by herself at the front of the class, the rest of the class a few rows behind. How was she to look at anyone's handwriting? She couldn't very well go walking up and down the aisle in the middle of the lecture, looking at everyone's desk in the hopes of finding a guy who wrote neatly. Elphaba mentally rolled her eyes at herself. Perhaps this had been a dumb idea, afterall.

And then the lecturer walked in and saved her the trouble.

"Good morning, class," he announced in his usual monotone. "I have here your assignments – all read, marked and ready to return. Miss Elphaba, would you do the honours?"

Elphaba stood and gladly accepted the stack of assignments. She knew that handing these out would only expose her to more opportunist attacks on her skin, as per usual, but today she didn't care. She had a more important task at hand.

As she flicked through the assignments and handed them to their respective owners, Elphaba carefully but casually scrutinized each set of handwriting. Unfortunately, the neatest handwriting was her own, and the neatest behind hers belonged to one particular boy in the class, and even that couldn't really be called 'neat' at all.

Elphaba sighed as she sat back down at her desk. One class down; one letter-writer still to find.

After the lesson, Elphaba made her way to the courtyard. She looked all around, taking particular notice of the grassy areas, but no-one was there and there did not appear to be any envelopes anywhere. Her shoulders slumping slightly, Elphaba headed off towards her next class, which was History. Elphaba knew there were no assignments due to be handed in or handed out, so there was no easy way she would be able to study anyone's handwriting. This one was going to call for a change of tack.

Spotting Boq taking his seat near the window on the other side of the classroom, Elphaba approached him slowly, casually glancing down at each occupied desk as she went, hoping to catch a glimpse of writing. Unfortunately, everyone had yet to take out what they needed for the class.

"Hey, Boq."

Boq glanced up in surprise. "Elphaba? Why aren't you sitting in your usual seat?"

Elphaba shrugged as she slipped into the seat beside him. "I felt like a change, so I thought I'd sit next to you today. Is that alright?"

Boq nodded. "Sure." He flashed her a small smile, before waving at someone behind her.

Elphaba turned around to see Fiyero strolling into the room. His face lit up as he saw her and he returned Boq's wave, though it was intended for the both of them.

"Hey, Fiyero," Boq greeted.

"Hello, Boq," Fiyero said cheerfully, plopping down into the free seat on Elphaba's other side. "Good morning, Elphaba."

"You're on time for a change," Elphaba observed. "Why is that?"

"Well, you know me," Fiyero said, stretching out his legs and draping an arm across the back of Elphaba's chair. "I'm fickle. I can never make up my mind and I never get into a routine."

Elphaba rolled her eyes and took out her notebook and pen. Boq followed suit, and Elphaba glanced surreptitiously over at his book. Elphaba felt as if her heartbeat had suddenly slowed down as she watched him flick through the pages filled with notes – Boq's writing was as neat as her own. Taking in a gulp of air, Elphaba leant towards him slightly and quietly asked, "Does the courtyard mean anything to you?"

Boq looked up at her, his eyes filled with confusion. "Huh?"

Elphaba shook her head. "Nevermind. What did you get Galinda for Valentine's Day?"

Boq's cheeks immediately flooded with colour and he began to stutter. "Uh, I, uh –"

Now that was the reaction Elphaba would have expected of him, and it was music to her ears.

Fiyero chuckled and leant over Elphaba's desk, whispering loudly enough for Boq to hear, "Don't embarrass the poor fellow. He already tortures himself with his love for Miss Galinda; there's no need for us to add to that pain."

Boq groaned and Elphaba laughed. "You're lucky Fiyero was here to save you," she told the Munchkin boy. "Otherwise you'd probably have had to endure me asking you about it for the whole lesson."

"By the way, Boq," Fiyero threw in casually, "what _did_ you get Galinda for Valentine's Day?"

Boq buried his head in his hands.

"You're cruel," Elphaba told Fiyero.

Fiyero grinned. "That's me."

Elphaba glanced up at the clock. "Doctor Dillamond will be here any moment now. Aren't you going to get your stuff ready?"

"Nah…maybe when he actually gets here." At Elphaba's pointed look, Fiyero threw up his hands. "Fine, fine. Getting my stuff out." Fiyero pulled out a tattered-looking book and a pen and turned to a clean page near the front of the book. "There."

Elphaba rolled her eyes just as Doctor Dillamond walked into the room. "I hope you're actually going to take notes this lesson," Elphaba muttered to Fiyero.

"Depends."

"What do you mean by that?"

"It depends on what I get as a reward."

"You won't have me going on and on about it. Is that fair?" Elphaba asked.

"Fine," Fiyero agreed. "Boy, you drive a hard bargain."

"That's me."

As the lesson wore on, Fiyero actually took a few notes, and Elphaba couldn't help but peek at his book. She tried to ignore the sense of disappointment that filled her heart when she realized that there was no way Fiyero could be the writer of the letter – his handwriting was so messy that she could barely distinguish what any of the words were supposed to be. If it wasn't Boq or Fiyero – the only two guys who actually knew Elphaba as more than just a temperamental girl with high grades and green skin – then who could it possibly be? It looked like she was going to have to wait a bit longer to find out.

Finally, the class was dismissed and Elphaba dashed out of the room as quickly as she could and headed straight for the courtyard.

When she arrived there, she searched the area again, but was disappointed to, once more, find nothing – until she noticed something yellow sitting on one of the benches near the grass at the opposite end of the courtyard. Elphaba made a beeline for the bench and, when she arrived there, discovered the yellow belonged to yet another bunch of flowers, this time one of daffodils. As she expected, another letter accompanied the gift. This time, Elphaba didn't wait until she was in her room to read the note; instead, she sat down on the bench and immediately opened the envelope.

_Now you know how I feel –  
>And hopefully you can see that this is real –<br>I suppose you are wondering who this is;  
>Who would want to steal your first kiss?<br>Another clue tomorrow awaits  
>In early morning when the sun shows her face.<em>

Elphaba's hand shook as she re-read the letter several times, unable to believe the fourth line. This had to be some joke; someone had to be stringing her along.

What's more, who would know that she hadn't been kissed before? Of course, everyone assumed that she hadn't – but who could really know that for a fact? Only two people knew she had never been kissed: her sister and Galinda. And they were both girls. Then again, Galinda was such a gossip, she could have told anyone. But it wasn't like she had much else to go on, so Elphaba decided to pursue that line of inquiry. Who would have been the first person Galinda would have told? And should she narrow that down to the first _male_ person Galinda would have told? Or should she keep things as broad as possible? In either event, Elphaba concluded, Galinda would most likely have told Fiyero first. Could Fiyero be…? Elphaba shook her head. No, of course not. He was Galinda's boyfriend. Oz, she really needed to stop bringing everything back to Fiyero. Who would Galinda have told next? Or who would Fiyero have told? Boq, most likely, if Fiyero indeed passed the information on (though why in Oz he would, Elphaba couldn't imagine). But she had already established that Boq was not the secret letter-writer. This was going to be a long process.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:**** I am very much enjoying everyone's reactions to this, ranging from confident conclusions to excitement and even to frustration. Keep it coming, guys!  
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**MyLittleElphie: Now you've tempted me to rewrite the whole thing so that Elphaba gives up and you never find out who it is. :P Luckily for you (and everyone else), I couldn't do that, because I'm too proud of what I've already written.  
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**Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: Trust you to be the only one to pick out my favourite part. :P Must be the twin thing.**

**Detective Marx: Thankyou! I'm really glad you like Boq. I'm quite fond of him, myself. ;)**

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 4:<strong>

"I'm so sorry, Elphie," Galinda said sadly that night when the girls were preparing for bed. "I couldn't find _anything_ out at all about who might be sending you those letters."

"It's okay, Glin," Elphaba comforted her. "I didn't really expect you to be able to find out anything. He seems to be a good secret-keeper."

"I failed," Galinda muttered miserably. Then she brightened. "So, did you go to the courtyard?"

Elphaba hesitated, before nodding. "Er, yes. I did."

"And?"

"He left me these." Elphaba brought the latest bunch of flowers around from the far side of her bed to show Galinda. "I hope you don't mind; I borrowed your vase."

Galinda's eyes widened at the sight. "Oh, _my_, Elphie! They're _gorgeous_! He must really love you. And of course I don't mind, silly," she added with a giggle.

Elphaba blushed. "I really don't know what to think," she confessed.

"And the note?" Galinda prompted.

"Who says there's a note?"

Galinda rolled her eyes. "Elphaba, he's already sent you two notes; I'd hardly think he'd stop there before we know who he is."

Elphaba sighed. "You're right," she admitted, pulling out the letter and handing it to her friend.

Galinda quickly read the note and let out a loud squeal. "Oh, my _Oz_, Elphie! This is totally the most romanticest thing I have _ever_ heard of! This beats out all those romances hand-down!"

"It's not romantic," Elphaba retorted, still attempting to, at least outwardly, hold to a firm belief that this was some cruel joke. "It's downright creepy. I mean, that thing about my first kiss…wait," Elphaba said, putting into motion her plan of how to get Galinda to admit she told someone that Elphaba had never been kissed, "you didn't tell anyone, did you, Glin?"

"Tell anyone what?" Galinda asked, confused.

"That I've never been kissed. You're the only one besides Nessa who knows that, and Nessa would never tell. So who did you tell?"

Galinda's eyes darted around the room nervously. "I didn't tell anyone…"

"Glin…"

"Okay, okay!" Galinda burst out after a moment. "You're right; I _did_ tell. But I didn't mean to! Swear to Oz! It just kind of slipped out one day and –"

"Who did you tell?"

"I didn't mean to!" Galinda wailed.

"Was it Fiyero?" Elphaba demanded sharply.

Galinda nodded, sniffling slightly.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Oh, stop being melodramatic. I'm not angry with you."

Galinda raised her head to meet Elphaba's gaze. "You're not?"

Elphaba shook her head, squeezing Galinda's arm. "No, I'm not. It's just…well, now it's got around, hasn't it? I really didn't want anyone talking about that sort of thing."

"I'm sorry!" Galinda cried, flinging her arms around Elphaba's neck.

"Glin, do you mind?" Elphaba asked, prying the smaller girl's arms away. "You're crushing my flowers."

"Oh, sorry!" Galinda squeaked, hastening to step away.

"Look, if it will make you feel better, I'll be angry with you later. For now, I just want to figure out who has been bothering me with these ridiculous letters."

"They're not ridiculous!" Galinda protested. "They're –"

"I know, they're romantic," Elphaba interrupted. "Whatever. I have to figure out the next step."

"Wait for the next gift!"

"But where?" Elphaba asked in exasperation. "The note just says when – an _approximate_ when at that – not _where_! How am _I_ to know? I don't read minds! If I did, I'd probably have figured out the culprit by now."

"Don't call him that," Galinda said in distaste. "It sounds like he's some sort of criminal or something."

"For all we know, he could be!" Elphaba ranted.

"Oh, Elphie, you have no sense of adventure," Galinda scolded her lightly. "Come on, let's go to bed. Then you can get up bright and early tomorrow morning and look for your next gift."

"Who says I'm going to get another gift?" Elphaba asked as she hopped into bed. "There might just be a letter. Or the punchline of the joke."

"Elphie…"

"Okay, okay, it's romantic." She paused. "Did you tell anyone else?"

"No! Of course not! I _only_ told Fiyero."

"Swear to Oz?"

Galinda nodded vigorously. "Swear to Oz."

"I wonder who Fiyero could have told, then?" Elphaba pondered.

"Elphie?" Galinda asked timidly.

"Yes, Glin?"

"You don't…" She swallowed hard. "You don't think it's Fiyero…do you?"

Elphaba looked at Galinda's wide, worry-filled blue eyes and shook her head. "No, Glin. I don't think it's Fiyero."

Galinda breathed a sigh of relief, and Elphaba guiltily tried to push down the wish that it _was_ Fiyero.

The next morning, the girls both woke at sunrise and immediately began discussing their theories about the mystery writer…at least, they would have, had they actually had any.

Elphaba sighed, her head resting on one hand as she rubbed her eyes with the other. "I just don't understand it," she mumbled sleepily. "No-one has ever shown an interest in me before. It has to be a joke."

"Elphie, stop thinking like that!" Galinda admonished as she opened the curtains. "There's a first time for everything."

"Not when it comes to that sort of thing, there isn't." At that moment, a soft gasp was heard from the direction of the window and Elphaba turned to look at Galinda. "What is it?"

"Oh, my," Galinda said, opening the window, "they're _beautiful_!"

"What?" Elphaba repeated.

"These." Galinda turned around and presented Elphaba with a bunch of white flowers. Each flower had six pointed petals of varying widths and a long tendril protruding from the base of the flower head.

Elphaba frowned as she accepted the flowers. "Yes, they are, but…what are they?"

Galinda shrugged. "Who knows? Who cares? They're pretty, and that's all that matters. Oh, here's the note." Galinda pointed to the envelope attached to the stalks of the flowers.

Elphaba retrieved her glasses and began reading.

_If you've figured out my system,  
>Rather obvious is this clue;<br>If you've figured out all of them,  
>Then there's nothing I can do.<br>But even so, I'm having fun,  
>So I'm making this a longer one:<br>The next clue regarding me  
>Is hidden in the tulip-tree.<em>

"I'm glad _someone_ is enjoying this," Elphaba muttered as Galinda snatched the note from her hands. "You know, Glin, I think I'm going to have to disagree with you."

"About what?" Galinda asked distractedly.

"What you said about the type of flowers not mattering. I'm getting the feeling that perhaps they do matter afterall."

Galinda looked up from the note with a frown. "What do you mean? He might just like the idea of giving you flowers."

"I don't think that's it. I mean, it's a nice idea and all – providing this isn't a joke, of course," Elphaba added, prompting Galinda to roll her eyes, "but if he knows me as well as he seems to, he should know that I'm not really a flower type of girl. So why does he keep sending me flowers? And moreover," she continued, seeing Galinda open her mouth to give some no doubt flimsy explanation, "why these particular flowers? If he just liked sending me flowers, don't you agree he would probably just choose one sort and stick to it?"

Galinda reluctantly had to admit that was true.

"So why all these different types? He seems to have carefully selected these flowers – one per note. There has to be something about these flowers. Look at those last two lines of the note." Elphaba pointed to said lines. "'The next clue regarding me' – the _next_ clue, Glin. That means that this" – she gestured to the most recent addition to her flower collection – "is some sort of clue to his identity. It _has_ to be the flowers; there is nothing of note in the first six lines of his letter. So, somehow, these flowers say something about him. And perhaps the tulip-tree does, as well. At any rate, these flowers are a clue. I'm going to find out what they are. Are you coming?"

"What, now?" Galinda squeaked. "It's six-thirty in the morning! The library isn't going to be open yet, if that's where you're heading."

Elphaba sighed. "True."

"Why don't you go look in the tulip-tree while you wait, hmmm?" Galinda suggested. "The letter doesn't say to look there at a particular time, so maybe it's already there waiting for you."

"Okay," Elphaba agreed. "I'll just get dressed and then I'll go and have a look."

"Can I come?" Galinda asked tentatively.

Elphaba flashed her friend a fond smile. "Sure."


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: I don't have much to say here, so let's just plunge straight in to the chapter, shall we? **

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 5:<strong>

Elphaba and Galinda hurried across the university campus, their hands buried deep in their coat pockets and their noses quickly becoming numb from the chilly morning air.

"It's a bit nippy out, isn't it?" Galinda commented.

"Hmmm?" Elphaba asked, preoccupied. She glanced over at her friend. "Oh, yes, it is."

"What are you thinking?" Galinda asked curiously.

"Oh, nothing, really."

"Elphaba…"

Elphaba sighed. "It's just these notes. I feel like there's a clue in one of them that I've completely overlooked, and it's really bothering me."

"Well, once you get your next clue, we can go over the notes again, okay?" Galinda said calmly. At that moment, she spotted the tree they were looking for. "We're almost there."

A wicked grin crossed Elphaba's face. "Race you!" With that, she took off at top speed, rocketing ahead of her friend.

"El-_phie_!" Galinda whined. "You can't expect me to run in high-heeled boots!"

Elphaba laughed and waited for the petite blonde to catch up before she turned her attention to the tree. Hands on her hips, she began searching the area for the next clue.

Galinda joined in, and it didn't take long for her to find it. "Ah-ha!" she announced, pulling the bunch of flowers from within a hollow in the tree trunk.

Elphaba hurried to her side. "More daffodils?" she questioned, confusion crossing her face.

"So much for your 'different flowers' theory," Galinda said, smirking triumphantly.

Elphaba shook her head. "No, there must be a reason."

"Maybe it's in the note," Galinda hinted.

"I doubt it," Elphaba said, but she opened the letter anyway and read it aloud this time.

_I must be getting impatient –  
>Three clues in one day is not what I planned.<br>None of these notes that I have sent  
>Are written in my hand.<br>Now it's getting personal,  
>Having given clues about me overall.<br>But my station is not yet fully described.  
>Tomorrow you will find out why.<em>

"That's the weirdest one yet," Elphaba grumbled.

"It's not very helpful," Galinda said, screwing her nose up.

"_Au contraire_," Elphaba said, "it is indeed helpful. But it's weird."

"_What_ about _that_ is _helpful_?" Galinda asked, baffled.

"Well, for one, we now know that the tulip-tree is definitely a clue. It has to be, because he specifically says he's given me three clues today. He says that his 'station is not yet fully described' – that means he has already tried to describe it to us. I presume that's where the tulip-tree and those white flowers come in. But what ties them together? How could they possibly describe someone's station?" Elphaba threw her hands up in the air. "And then the daffodils. 'Now it's getting personal', he says. That must mean the daffodils say something about his personality. But what? And why give me some with that clue when he has already given me some?"

"Do you want my opinion?" Galinda asked.

"You'd give it anyway," Elphaba retorted with a shrug.

"I think you're reading too deeply into this."

Elphaba stared at Galinda. "I thought you wanted to find out who keeps sending me these things? You seemed keener on it than I am."

"I am," Galinda replied, "but I think you're taking things just a tad too far. I'm sure the clues aren't really as deep as you think, and maybe you just can't see the obvious because you're looking at things too in-depth."

"So what's the obvious?" Elphaba queried.

Galinda faltered. "I-I'm not sure," she admitted. "But I'm not very good when it comes to these things. You're so much smarter than me. I'm sure if you just stepped away from it, you'd be able to figure everything out straight away. Afterall, no-one in Shiz is as smart as you. I doubt any guy would be able to keep you guessing this long."

Elphaba sighed. "Maybe you're right."

"Great!"

"But I'm not convinced."

"Of course you're not."

"There's something else in this note. _That's_ where there's something obvious."

"You're missing something like in the other note?" Galinda questioned.

"I'm not sure. Possibly." Elphaba re-read the letter. "Ah-ha!" she cried after a moment. "That's it!"

"What is? 'Ah-ha' what?" Galinda asked impatiently.

"This part: 'None of these notes I have sent are written in my hand.' He obviously knew that I was trying to make a deduction based on handwriting samples and is telling me not to waste my time." She frowned. "But surely it's not _that_ big a waste of time, right? Besides, how did he know I was doing that?"

"I don't know," Galinda said. "Even _I_ didn't know you were doing that."

"Yeah, I was," Elphaba admitted. "Yesterday, in my first two classes, I tried to find guys with neat handwriting. That didn't work out. Boq was the only guy I could find with neat handwriting, and it's _definitely_ not him. Though I didn't get a chance to see anyone else's writing in History." After a moment, Elphaba's eyes widened. "That's it! _That's_ what has been bothering me!"

"What?" Galinda asked, excited by Elphaba's own excited tone of voice.

"He's in my History class!"

"How do you know?"

"Because of the second note." Elphaba quickly dug it out of her pocket and read aloud, "'Be in the courtyard tomorrow at a certain hour after a certain class.' When I found the next note and the daffodils, I had just come from History! Therefore, he must be in my History class! But what's so special about eleven o'clock?" she wondered aloud, screwing up her face.

"Maybe something special happened one day at eleven o'clock after History?" Galinda suggested.

"Something special to do with me?" Elphaba asked pointedly.

Galinda shrugged. "Just an idea. I can't think of any other reason he would have put the exact time in the note."

"Neither can I," Elphaba admitted. "But I would have remembered if it was to do with me. Nothing special ever happens to me. No, I think it's more likely that it's to do with him. But how am I to figure out what when I don't know _who_?"

"Look, let's not worry about that for the moment, hmmm? Why don't you just concentrate on finding out what those flowers are?" Galinda proposed.

"Okay, okay," Elphaba gave in. "One thing at a time. Flowers."

Lunchtime found Elphaba sitting in the library poring over botany books. Unfortunately, she hadn't had any time to do any research before her first class, but now she had a whole hour to find out what those white flowers were. However, as she flicked through page after page, she had a feeling it would take a lot longer than just an hour. With a sigh, Elphaba gathered up the books and took them up to the counter.

Once Elphaba had checked the books out of the library, she headed up to her dorm room. She had a free period next and, for once, she intended to study something other than schoolwork. She was ahead in all of her classes, afterall, so just one day off studying couldn't hurt.

For two and a half hours, Elphaba scoured the books, trying to find anything that even faintly resembled the flowers sitting across from her. Eventually, she looked up, only to find that she only had two minutes left before her next class. With a sigh, she snapped the book shut and stood, turning to leave the room, only to turn back and stare at the books for a moment. Making a split-second decision, Elphaba grabbed a couple of the thinner books and shoved them into her bag.

As she hurried into the classroom, she spied Galinda sitting on the other side of the room and she made her way over to her friend.

"You're late," Galinda commented in surprise as Elphaba sank into the chair beside her.

"Still before class starts, though," Elphaba pointed out, slightly breathless from hurrying across the campus.

"Just," Galinda said as the lecturer entered the classroom.

About halfway through the lesson, Elphaba pulled one of the botany books from her bag and sat it on her lap to flick through between notes.

Galinda noticed and leant over, whispering harshly, "Elphie, what are you _doing_?"

"Looking for the flowers," Elphaba murmured.

Elphaba proceeded to spend the rest of the lecture alternating between taking notes and flicking through the botany book. Finally, about five minutes before the end of the lesson, Elphaba came across the flower. "That's it!" she exclaimed.

"Please do share the answer, Miss Elphaba," the lecturer said, peering at her over the rim of his spectacles.

Elphaba looked up. "Huh?" She glanced around, before remembering where she was. "Oh, uh, sorry, sir; I must have been mistaken."

"Hmmm." The lecturer looked at her for a moment longer before turning around and sharing the answer himself.

Galinda, meanwhile, was staring open-mouthed at the green girl. "Elphaba!" she hissed.

Elphaba looked at her and widened her eyes, moving her gaze several times between Galinda's face and the book in her lap. When Galinda cocked her head to the side and gave her a confused look, Elphaba surreptitiously shoved the book closer to the other girl and tapped the page with her finger.

Finally, class was dismissed, and Elphaba grabbed Galinda's hand, yanking her along as she ran outside to the bench closest to the building they were in.

Huffing slightly, Galinda threw herself onto the bench next to Elphaba as the latter passed the book over for her friend to read.

"_Angraecum_?" Galinda read, pronouncing each syllable slowly and carefully.

Elphaba nodded. "Commonly known as angrek. According to that, it's a genus of orchid. And that" – she pointed to the picture that had caught her eye – "is known as '_Angraecum star bright_' – exactly the same type of flower the letter-writer left for me."

"Okay, so we've identified the flower," Galinda said logically. "Now what? How does that help us?"

"I have no idea," Elphaba admitted with a sigh.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note:**** Keep the guesses coming! :D**

**In other news...I've got my Birthday present all sorted. I'VE GOT TICKETS BOOKED TO SEE ANTHONY WARLOW IN CONCERT IN JULY! *fangirl***

**And if you don't know who he is...YOUTUBE. RIGHT NOW. You NEED to know who he is.**

**That's my announcement of the day. :P Please excuse me...I'm like, on top of the world right now. I was supposed to see him twice before, first in Phantom of the Opera in 2008, then in Dr. Zhivago (for my Birthday) in 2011...and both times, he was off sick. So I'm super-excited that this is finally going to happen!**

**Ahem. On with the story...**

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 6:<strong>

Elphaba spent that evening going through the botany books to see if there was anything of interest regarding any of the other flowers that had been given to her or mentioned in the letters.

"Anything?" Galinda asked as she came out of the shower.

"Possibly…" Elphaba said thoughtfully as she read a particular section of the book. After a moment, she looked up. "Daffodils."

"What about them?"

"According to this, they belong to the genus _Narcissus_."

That meant nothing to Galinda. She shrugged. "So?"

"There are different types of _Narcissus_. And I think I've been given four of them." Elphaba went over to where the flowers were, picked up the two vases of daffodils and brought them back to where her desk where she had the book open.

As Elphaba studied the flowers and the pictures in turn, Galinda wandered over and glanced at the book over her shoulder. "Well?" she asked after a few minutes. "Have you drawn any conclusions yet?"

"I think so…" Elphaba trailed off, before continuing, "There are two types in the first bunch: the _Narcissus pseudonarcissus_, commonly known as the wild daffodil, and the _Narcissus jonquilla_, commonly known as the jonquil. There are a further two types in the second bunch: the _Narcissus longispathus_ and the _Narcissus poeticus_ – interestingly enough, one of the common names for the latter is the poet's daffodil."

"So what's this all mean?" Galinda asked.

"To tell you the truth," Elphaba said, removing her glasses and rubbing her eyes, "I have no idea. But it's interesting, don't you think?"

"Uh, yeah, sure, Elphie," Galinda said rather unenthusiastically.

Elphaba chuckled. "Okay, I know, you think it's boring. But there could be something in it. Just what, I don't know. It's just this feeling I have."

"Alright, Elphie. If you want to waste your time looking through flower books, go ahead. But I think you'll get further if you just wait for the next note."

"Yeah, maybe," Elphaba admitted.

"I know you, Elphie," Galinda said. "You can't just do nothing about it, right?"

Elphaba nodded.

"So why don't you just write down what you've figured out so far or what you think the real clues are, and then go to bed and see what tomorrow's note brings. Yes?"

"Okay," Elphaba conceded reluctantly, following Galinda's advice.

The sixth letter was sitting on the floor of the room the next morning when the girls awoke. It had obviously been pushed underneath the door, and Elphaba didn't hesitate to open it, Galinda impatiently bouncing up and down by her side.

"Well? What does it say?" Galinda demanded.

Once again, Elphaba read the note aloud to her friend.

_On the edge of town nearest Shiz  
>There a lonely-looking field of crops is.<br>Find your way there  
>And note the crops, take care –<br>For that may be a hint…  
>And, no, it's not mint.<br>Go there after school  
>And I will be a very happy fool.<em>

"Oh, this is getting ridiculous!" Elphaba cried out.

"Still romantic," Galinda reminded her with a giggle.

Elphaba glowered at her. "It is not. It's _worse_ than creepy now! I'm not going to some field by myself. Whoever it is will probably be there. It's probably some big set-up to do something unspeakable to me – something _worse_ than a joke, perhaps. No, I am _not_ going."

And so, that afternoon, Elphaba set off towards the edge of town – she thought she knew the field the letter-writer was talking about, but she wasn't all that sure. There could be a dozen fields there, for all she knew, and she really didn't feel like searching each and every one of them.

After a few miles, Elphaba finally reached the field she was thinking of. Remembering the instructions of the letter, her attention was immediately drawn to the crops and she felt more confused than ever when she saw wheat growing in the field.

Not knowing what to expect, Elphaba walked into the middle of the field and stood there, waiting.

An hour passed and nothing happened. "Please don't tell me I'm supposed to _find_ something here," she muttered. Taking a deep breath, she searched the field thoroughly before making her way around the perimeter.

Eventually, Elphaba came to a corner of the wooden fence that was the temporary home of yet another bunch of flowers – accompanied, of course, by another note.

"I'm not even going to bother reading this here," Elphaba decided aloud, immediately heading back towards Shiz.

She didn't even read the note when she reached her dorm room. In fact, the note and flowers were left lying on her desk, untouched, until Galinda announced her presence with a bang of the door.

"I'm ho-ome!" she sang. "And I hope you went and met your secret admirer."

"Not exactly," Elphaba said, turning the page of the book she was reading.

"What do you mean, 'not exactly'?" Galinda demanded. "I know you said you weren't going to go, but –"

"I went."

"You did?" Galinda couldn't keep the surprise out of her voice.

"Yes. There was no-one there."

"Oh. Well, I must say, that is disappointing."

"But there were more flowers and another note."

"Oh!" Galinda squealed, spying said objects. "What does the note say this time?"

"I don't know."

"What do you mean, you don't know?" Galinda demanded.

"I haven't read it yet."

"You haven't read it yet?!" Galinda shrieked. "Why not?"

Elphaba sighed and set aside her book. "Galinda, I'm over this whole thing. If he doesn't want to tell me who he is, who am I to chase him up?"

"Uh, you're the one he loves," Galinda stressed.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right."

"You're just sore because you've had six notes and you still haven't figured out the mystery. You really do want to know who it is, but you don't like the fact that you haven't been able to figure it out for yourself. Well, tough tomatoes."

"Goodnight, Galinda."

"It's not even seven o'clock yet!"

There was no reply.

"Fine. Have it your way, Miss Hoity-toity." Galinda huffed and stormed into the bathroom.

Elphaba bit her lip. As much as she hated to admit it, Galinda was right. She didn't like that she couldn't solve this mystery. Maybe she should read the note. After a moment of hesitation, Elphaba got up and grabbed the envelope off her desk. She quickly read the note, then put it back in its envelope and returned it to the desk.

When Galinda came out of the bathroom, she noticed Elphaba feigning sleep, and looked at the desk. It did not escape her notice that the envelope was now unsealed.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note:**** OH, MY OZ. I just want to thank you all RIGHT NOW because I'm only halfway through posting this story, and it's already garnered the second-most number of reviews out of all of my stories - and the most on any of my Wicked stories by far. It also has the most number of followers of all my Wicked stories (second overall to the same story that has the most reviews). So a big thankyou to everyone who is reading, following and reviewing this story! It really means a lot. I'm so stoked by the response. Thankyou.  
><strong>

**I hope this chapter satisfies you all somewhat. At least you get to find out what the note says! And see if you can pick up my favourite part of this chapter. ;)  
><strong>

**The Wizard Of Wicked: Heheh, "ozdarn"...I like that! That made me giggle.**

**Glitter-Bunnii: Yep, I've been taking cliffhanger lessons from Maddy. :P**

**Also, this was meant to be up at ten o'clock this morning, but I was trying to get ready for a concert and then Dad was hogging the computer. So I'm sorry this is over eight hours late! :S**

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 7:<strong>

_Now that you have all the clues  
>You need to figure out just who<br>It is who keeps on writing to you –  
>And I know you can, very easily, too –<br>The time is drawing near  
>For me to finally appear.<br>If no agreement to this I hear,  
>You still don't like me I will fear.<br>Tomorrow night is the date –  
>I'll be picking you up around eight.<br>Get the help of your roommate  
>For she knows how to deal with your hate<br>Of anything to do with going out.  
>Do it, otherwise I'll pout,<br>And if you do, I will shout,  
>And please believe I am no lout.<em>

"Oh, Elphie!" Galinda squealed excitedly. "This is amazing! You've got a date tomorrow night! You're going to find out who your mystery letter-writer is!"

"No, I'm not. Besides, he said tonight."

"No, he didn't," Galinda argued, pointing at the note, "he said _tomorrow_ night. See?"

"Galinda," Elphaba said patiently, "I got the note yesterday."

"Oh." There was a pause, before Galinda's eyes widened in realization. "Oh! Oh, what am I going to do with you? I can't figure out what to do for your _very first date_ on such late notice!"

"Galinda," Elphaba said firmly, "I am _not_ going."

"What do you mean, you're not going?" Galinda demanded. "Of _course_ you're going! You want to find out who your admirer is, don't you?"

"Not particularly."

"Elphiiiiiiie! We've been trying to figure out who it is. We're _this close_ to finding out for certain, and you just want to throw that away?"

"It's all a big joke. I just know it." She suddenly tossed a suspicious sideways glance at her roommate. "You're not in on this, are you?"

"What?" Galinda shrieked.

"'Get the help of your roommate'. Why else would that be in there?" Elphaba asked pointedly.

"Maybe he just _knows_ that I _looove_ making you over!" Galinda returned evenly.

"Glin, not many people know that," Elphaba said. "It brings us back to the same two guys: Fiyero and Boq. And we know it's neither of them. Let's just face it: it's going to be some huge prank, or else someone will find my dead body in the morning."

Galinda let out a shocked gasp. "Elphaba! Don't say such things!"

"I'm just trying to be realistic. You have to admit, it sounds awfully creepy."

"It _has_ to be genuine," Galinda argued. "He said he'll pick you up. Himself. Creepy murderers don't do that."

Elphaba sighed. "Well, that much is true," she admitted. "He wouldn't offer to pick me up from my room if he intended to kill me, would he?"

"Right," Galinda said in satisfaction.

"But I'm still not going."

Galinda fixed Elphaba with a look and planted her hands on her hips. "Elphaba Melena Thropp, you are going tonight, and that is that!"

"Bossy little thing, aren't you?" Elphaba grumbled.

Galinda grinned. "That's me." She threw her arms around Elphaba in a huge hug. "Aw, Elphie! I'm so happy for you! Your _very first date_!" She pulled back. "Now come on; we've got so much to do before tonight!"

"Galinda…"

"Not just what you're going to wear," Galinda said, holding up a hand, "although that _is_ the main thing, but it's not the only thing."

"What else do we have to do?" Elphaba asked, confused. "It's Saturday, so we don't have any classes. The only thing I can think of is homework."

Galinda gave an exaggerated sigh. "Elphie, not that!" she whined. She paused. "Actually…it kind of _is_ homework," Galinda said thoughtfully, "but not for class."

Elphaba's eyebrow rose. "Oh? Do enlighten me."

"Flowers."

Elphaba's eyebrow crept further up her forehead. "Flowers?" she repeated in disbelief.

Galinda nodded. "You've been trying to figure out his 'system' with the flowers, haven't you? You got out all those botany books," she pointed out.

"Yes," Elphaba said slowly.

"Well, let's start with identifying these flowers," Galinda said briskly, picking up the flowers which had been left with the latest note.

"Why?" Elphaba asked in exasperation. "If I'm supposed to find out tonight who he is, what's the point of trying to figure it out now? Why not just wait a few hours?"

"_Because_," Galinda said in a tone which indicated that it should have been painfully obvious to Elphaba, "he'll want to know if you got all the flowers…he'll expect you to know what they all are. And maybe – just maybe – we can crack his system. Well? What are you waiting for? Get those books!" Galinda clucked, flapping her hands.

"Yes, ma'am," Elphaba said with a roll of her eyes as she retrieved the books she had borrowed two days prior. Passing one to Galinda, Elphaba began to flip through the pages. Galinda followed suit and they both paused every now and then to scrutinize the flowers.

"I've got it!" Galinda cried after ten minutes.

Elphaba peered over her shoulder. "No, wrong shape," she said, shaking her head.

"They're yellow," Galinda said redundantly.

"Wrong shape," Elphaba repeated.

Galinda sighed. "Drat."

They sat in silence for a while longer until Elphaba spoke again. "Here it is. Coreopsis." She turned to Galinda. "Well, we've identified it. Now what?"

"I'm not sure," Galinda admitted, chewing her lip. "You tried drawing connections before, didn't you?"

Elphaba nodded in the affirmative. "Yes, and it got me nowhere."

"Let's go over it again," Galinda decided. "Just in case you missed something. Besides, now we've identified these flowers…it might help somehow."

Elphaba pursed her lips. "Fine." She pulled out all of the notes and spread them out in front of her. "Note number five," she began. "'Now it's getting personal' – we've already established that the clues he is referring to are the flowers. The flowers somehow describe him – well, some of them do, at any rate. Let's start with the ones with the note. The tulip-tree and two different types of _narcissus_. The coreopsis from the latest note…" She trailed off.

"What about the one before that?" Galinda asked. "There weren't any flowers with that note."

Elphaba frowned as she re-read the note several times. "He told me to take note of the crops growing in the field," she said, her voice filled with confusion.

"What were they?"

"…Wheat."

"Wheat?" Galinda asked sceptically.

Elphaba nodded.

"Are you sure?"

"Galinda, I grew up in a farm area," Elphaba said. "I know what wheat looks like. It was wheat."

"That's not in the least bit romantic," Galinda huffed, turning up her nose. "And he was doing so well up until that point."

Elphaba shook her head. "There had to be a reason. It ties in with him. His personality, his…profession?"

"I've never heard of any farmers being romantic before," Galinda said doubtfully.

Elphaba chuckled. "I don't think he's a farmer."

"A Munchkin?" Galinda suggested. "Someone who grew up in Munchkinland like you?"

"Which brings us back to Boq," Elphaba groaned.

"Not necessarily," Galinda said. "There are other Munchkins and Munchkinlanders at Shiz."

Elphaba stared at Galinda. "All of whom are girls," she said pointedly.

Galinda's eyes widened. "You don't think –"

"_No_, I _don't_ think," Elphaba cut her off icily.

"But, Elphie, we've been assuming all this time it's a guy. What if it isn't? I mean, the notes don't exactly say, 'I'm a guy', do they? What if we've been looking in the wrong places?" Galinda sounded panicky. "Oh, Oz, what if I'm sending you off for a date with a _girl_?"

"Galinda!" Elphaba said, her voice raised so as to be heard over Galinda's ramblings. "It's either a guy or a joke. It has to be." This last was muttered under her breath.

"But you can't know that for certain!" Galinda cried.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. For the moment, let's just assume it's a guy. These flowers – and the wheat – have something to do with him somehow. Nothing seems to connect the flowers to each other, so that avenue is out. I honestly don't know what these plants would say about someone's personality or…_anything_ about a person, really. Except that they like those plants, and, somehow, I don't think that's it." She was silent for a moment as she mulled things over in her mind. "But this also means that the flowers that came _before_ this note said something about something, too, but not about him. But about _what_, exactly?" she asked, frustrated.

"I don't know, Elphie," Galinda said, leaning her head on her fist. "I don't know."


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note:**** So I started university today. Yay! Started it off with documentaries on composers. Great start!  
><strong>

**Kudos to The Wizard Of Wicked for picking up my favourite part! It was the bit where Galinda starts panicking that it might be a girl who has been writing Elphaba the notes. :)**

**And I hope you've all YouTubed Anthony Warlow by now... ;)**

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 8:<strong>

After a while, Galinda decided to go out shopping for Elphaba's date that night. She had tried to drag Elphaba along, but Elphaba had insisted she should stay right was she was lest another note be sent to her. Reluctantly, Galinda had agreed that was a good idea and gone on her merry way. Elphaba had breathed a sigh of relief once Galinda was out of earshot; she hadn't wanted to go shopping and needed any excuse she could find to not go. Luckily, Galinda bought almost anything Elphaba fed her.

She also bought almost anything Elphaba didn't want.

When Galinda came back early that afternoon, it was with a bounce in her step, a cheerful demeanour and two fistfuls of shopping bags.

"You didn't buy all that stuff for me, did you?" Elphaba asked, warily eyeing the bags.

"Well…no," Galinda admitted guiltily.

"Thank Oz."

"I got what I wanted for you and was on my way home when I saw this gorgeous pink dress that I absolutely _had_ to have, and…"

Elphaba tuned out as Galinda rabbited on and on about her latest purchases, only vaguely paying attention as the blonde girl pulled item after item out of her bags. However, her attention was caught when Galinda pulled out a book. "You bought a book?" she asked in surprise.

Galinda beamed. "I was walking past the florist's when I saw this in the window. They were having a Valentine's Day clearance – you know, now that it's over for the year and everything. It's a guide for men to buying the perfect flowers for your girlfriend…fiancée, wife, whatever. Partner. Anyway, it's got all these pretty flowers in it and it's got quizzes and everything – you know, so men can figure out which flowers would best be appreciated by the woman in their lives."

"So why did _you_ buy it?" Elphaba asked. "You're not a man…are you?" She smirked, her eyes twinkling, as Galinda shot her a glare.

"Elphaba, don't be so obscure."

"I think you mean 'obscene'."

"Whatever. I bought it so that I can drop hints to Fiyero next year. Or…whenever I decide I want him to give me flowers. So he gets me the right ones. See?"

Elphaba didn't really, but she nodded anyway.

"Okay, try this on and tell me what you think." Galinda thrust a dress into Elphaba's face.

"Galinda –"

"Go."

Knowing it would be of no use whatsoever to put up an argument, Elphaba took the dress and slinked into the bathroom. She put on the dress, which was black and came down past her knees. It flattered her figure perfectly and the diamante brooch which sat on her left hip gave enough lift to the entire picture without being overdone. Elphaba had to admit that it wasn't _that_ bad. Steeling herself for Galinda's doubtless loud reaction, Elphaba opened the door and proceeded to show her friend the result.

"Eeeeeee! Elphie, it's perfect! What do you think?"

"I guess…it's okay."

Galinda squealed again. "Yay, I knew it! Now, hair."

"Galinda, it's not even two o'clock!" Elphaba protested in exasperation. "The date is _six hours away_!"

"_Exactly_! Only _six hours_ to get you ready!"

"Gee, thanks, Galinda. I forgot I was your 'toughest case'," Elphaba said sarcastically, causing Galinda to wince.

"I didn't mean it like that. I mean…it's a date! It's your _first date_. You have to look _perfect_. Perfect doesn't just happen with a click of the fingers, you know."

"Perfect doesn't just happen with Elphaba Thropp, you know," Elphaba countered.

Galinda scowled. "Elphie…" she said warningly.

"Five o'clock," Elphaba said firmly. "Let's compromise."

"Fine," Galinda said with a dramatic sigh.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Oh, why don't you just read your new book?" she snapped.

Galinda immediately brightened. "That's an idea!"

"It is?" Elphaba said, feigning surprise.

Galinda screwed up her nose. "Oh, you know what I mean."

Elphaba chuckled as her mood suddenly lifted again.

Galinda drew the book towards her and opened to the first page. Her eyes were instantly drawn towards a coloured box at the side of the page. She began reading aloud. "'Tip: Show your girl exactly how you feel with a bunch of beautiful roses. However, steer clear of black, dark pink and yellow roses. For further information, see Figure 1.1: The Meanings of Roses.' I wonder why they say to steer clear from dark pink roses? I think they're pretty." Galinda turned the page and found the table immediately. "Here it is. 'Dark pink: Gratitude'. How curious." She was quiet for a moment. "Fiyero sent me dark pink roses for Valentine's Day. What would he have to be grateful for?"

"That you're his girlfriend?" Elphaba suggested flatly.

Galinda smiled. "Yeah. That must be it."

"Galinda, I highly doubt Fiyero is even _aware_ that flowers have meanings, let alone knows what they are."

"How do you know?" Galinda countered. "He might have beaten me to this book. Afterall, he bought flowers from a florist's shop. That might have been the one. Or the others might be selling the same book."

At that moment, there was a knock on the door. "I'll get it!" Galinda said, but Elphaba was already standing by the door and had opened it by the time Galinda was anywhere near her.

Elphaba opened the door to reveal the delivery man from a few days prior. "Miss Galinda Upland?"

Elphaba indicated the other girl with a flick of the wrist.

The delivery man held out the clipboard towards Galinda. "Would you please sign here, miss?"

Galinda happily obliged as the delivery man handed a bunch of roses to Elphaba. "Thankyou," Galinda chirped as the man moved off and Elphaba closed the door. Galinda took the roses from her friend and sniffed them delicately. "How lovely." However, as she glanced down to look at the flowers properly, Galinda frowned. "I don't understand," she said in confusion. "There's a black rose in the middle. Why would Fiyero send me a black rose?"

Elphaba shrugged. "Maybe they're not from Fiyero."

"But why would _anyone_ send me a black rose?" Galinda pressed. "I don't get it."

"The yellow ones are pretty," Elphaba offered. "Very…cheerful."

"I'm looking up the book," Galinda announced, her voice firm. She snatched up the book. "They said specifically to steer clear of black and yellow. These are black and yellow. They said the same thing about dark pink roses, and he sent me those, too." Galinda read the meanings of black and yellow roses, and her face drained of all colour. Shakily, she put down the book.

"Galinda?" Elphaba asked in concern. "What is it?" When Galinda gave no reply, Elphaba picked up the book to see for herself. What she read rather startled her.

_Black: Death, hatred, farewell, rejuvenation, rebirth.  
>Yellow: Friendship, jealousy, infidelity, apology, a broken heart, intense emotion, dying love, extreme betrayal.<em>

"Oh," was all she said.

"Damn straight, 'oh'," Galinda muttered bitterly.

"Well, look, Galinda," Elphaba said in an attempt to comfort her friend, "maybe he has no idea that yellow roses don't exactly have the sweetest meaning."

"And the black rose?"

Elphaba faltered. "I…don't know," she admitted. "Maybe he thought it was quirky? You know, something different."

Galinda shook her head. "He _knows_ I hate black."

Elphaba's eyes narrowed. "Watch it, girl."

"I mean for me," Galinda clarified.

"As I said, maybe they're not from Fiyero. Look, there's a note attached."

Sure enough, there was a piece of paper tied to the stems of the roses. Galinda detached the note from the ribbon and read it aloud. "'I'm sorry.'" The wail that followed was so loud that Elphaba literally jumped a foot in the air. "I knew it! I knew it was bad news!" Galinda burst into noisy tears.

Elphaba was scared to ask what Galinda thought it meant. Instead, she simply put her arms around the smaller girl and pulled her in for a tight hug.

"He's breaking up with me, Elphie," Galinda sniffled. "He's breaking up with me."


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note:**** Virtual cookies to MyLittleElphie for being my fiftieth reviewer! My first half century on a WicFic! :D  
><strong>

**Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: Girl, why do you always manage to find all of my own favourite lines? Is this payback? ;) Just kidding - you know I love it!**

**The Wizard Of Wicked: Yes, the universe is a Fiyeraba shipper. We fanfic authors have brainwashed the entire universe. *wiggles eyebrows***

**Yeah, Fiyero is utterly brainless, isn't he? ...But are the flowers really from him? Do they mean what Galinda thinks they mean? Or is she jumping to the wrong conclusions? Are they from someone else? Someone who has to leave for some reason? Is it just all co-incidence?  
><strong>

**Pick up my favourite line!**

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 9:<strong>

"It's Fiyero," Galinda repeated bitterly as she covered Elphaba's eyelids in eyeshadow. "I know it's him. It's too co-incidental. You have a date tonight…he breaks up with me this afternoon…he uses flowers and flower meanings to do it…oooh, it's clever, alright. But he's too cowardly to come and tell me it's over to my face. Well, he'll get his."

"Ow!" Elphaba cried as Galinda stabbed the applicator at the crease of Elphaba's eye socket.

However, Galinda didn't even seem to notice. "He'll come crawling back to me when I end up with someone far better than him. You'll see. He'll be crawling to me on all fours."

"Galinda, I really don't think –"

"If he wanted you all this time, why did he send all those Valentine's gifts to _me_? Why didn't he break it off before this? Why _now_?"

"Galinda!" Elphaba exclaimed.

Galinda stopped and looked at her. "Yes, Elphie?"

Elphaba pointed to her eye. "Firstly, I really don't want to go out looking like I've just copped one from you. Secondly, I really don't want to give you a reason to give me one, so let's keep the accusations and conclusion-jumping to a minimum, hmmm?"

Galinda glanced down at the floor, looking appropriately ashamed. "Sorry," she mumbled. "I didn't mean to take it out on you."

"It's okay," Elphaba said gently. "But could you fix up my eye, please?"

Galinda looked up again and giggled when she saw what Elphaba meant. "I did go a little overboard with the eyeshadow, didn't I?"

"You were distracted. It wouldn't have been so bad if it weren't black," Elphaba teased. Once Galinda had fixed up her make-up blunder, Elphaba continued, "I really don't think it's Fiyero I'll be meeting tonight. I don't know who it could be, but I honestly don't think it would be him."

Galinda sighed. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm reading too much into this."

Elphaba gave her a reassuring smile. "That's better. Now, you'd better hurry up with this make-up, because it's quarter-past seven already and you've still got my hair to do. Oh, Oz, what am I saying?" she groaned. "I'm actually _encouraging_ you to give me a make-over? What is _happening_ to me?"

Galinda grinned. "You wised up."

"No, I think I, like you, got distracted." As Galinda finished Elphaba's make-up and started on her hair, Elphaba reached for Galinda's new book. "Is there anything in here about any of those other flowers?"

Galinda shrugged, her mouth full of bobby-pins. "I 'on't know," she mumbled. "Probably not. It's mostly roses, I think."

Elphaba began to flick through the pages. Just as she was beginning to grow sick of seeing rose after rose on the pale pink pages, she came across another flower – lilacs. "Lilacs are in here," she commented to Galinda.

"Oh? Wha' 'oesh i' shay?" Galinda asked as she pulled a pin from her mouth and stabbed it into Elphaba's thick hair.

"'Purple lilacs are the perfect flower to give any new girlfriend. The flowers mean 'first emotion of love', while white lilacs mean 'youthful innocence, memories'.'" Elphaba screwed up her face as Galinda squealed.

"Oooh, E'phie! I wash wight! 'E –" Galinda broke off with a gurgling sound as she began to cough violently.

Elphaba looked up in alarm. "Galinda, are you alright?"

Galinda pulled the pins from her mouth, her face turning red. After a moment, the coughing began to subside. "Almost choked on a pin," she gasped out hoarsely.

"Are you alright now? Would you like some water?" Elphaba asked anxiously.

Galinda shook her head. "No, I…I think I'm okay," she managed. "Just give me a moment." She leant on the table for a minute as her breathing began to return to normal, before she returned to her task – being careful _not_ to put any pins in her mouth this time. "He sent you purple lilacs, Elphie. That means he's falling in love with you!"

"I don't think –"

"Of _course_ that's why he sent them. He did say in his letter that what he feels for you begins with the same letter as the flowers – which is an 'L', which means he L-oves you. And this" – she indicated the book in front of Elphaba – "just confirms it."

Elphaba was silent for the rest of the time it took Galinda to finish her hair. It wasn't until the pair were waiting for Elphaba's date for the night that Elphaba finally spoke again. "I really don't think this is going to be genuine. But, if it is, and I don't enjoy myself, I won't be sticking it out – I'll be coming straight back here." She paused, before squeezing Galinda's hand. "Thanks, Glin. And I'm sorry about Fiyero."

Galinda gave her a watery smile. "It's okay," she said bravely.

"Will you be alright by yourself for a little while?" Elphaba asked gently.

Galinda nodded. "I'll be fine." She glanced at the clock. "It's eight o'clock. He'll be here at any moment. Ready?"

Elphaba shrugged. "I guess."

As if on cue, a knock was heard at the door. Immediately, Elphaba's hand flew to her hair. "I can't do this, Glin," she said, her voice panicky. "I look horrendible. He'll laugh at me. Or it's all some sick prank."

Galinda narrowed her eyes at her friend. "I gave you a make-over, Elphie. It is impossible to have a Galinda make-over and look anything less than stunning." Seeing Elphaba open her mouth to protest, Galinda cut in, "Yes, even _you_." She gave the taller girl a hug. "Now you go out there and knock 'em dead."

"I will if this isn't genuine," Elphaba muttered under her breath as Galinda opened the door.

There was no-one there.

Confused, Galinda peered into the hall.

"He's changed his mind," Elphaba said flatly.

"No, he hasn't," Galinda said as she caught sight on something on the floor. She bent down to pick it up. "It's another note."

"Oh, no," Elphaba said, backing away. "I'm not doing this. He's a psycho; I just know it. He's out there waiting to murder me. No, no, no, you can't force me to go. I'm staying right here."

With a roll of her eyes, Galinda unfolded the note and began to read.

_Very soon you will have found  
>Just who it is whose heart you've bound.<br>But before I reveal my identity,  
>There's just one thing I want from thee:<br>Promise me that you won't run  
>Though I tell you that this has been fun.<br>If you promise that, then meet me where  
>The freshest thing around is air.<em>

Galinda sighed. "This is going to be a long night."

"No, it's not, because I'm not going," Elphaba said stubbornly.

"But Elphie, you _have_ to go!"

"Even if it _is_ genuine," Elphaba began, "I'm very wary of who it is. He wants me to promise him I won't run away. Does that mean he's horrendible? Well, so am I, so I guess we'd make a good pair," she said sarcastically.

"No way! And I'm sure that's not what he means. I think he's apologizing for the creepiness of the notes, just in case that's what you've been thinking – and you have," Galinda told her friend. "So go."

"Okay, okay, I'll go," Elphaba gave in. "But if something happens to me, I'm holding you responsible. Now where does he want me to meet him? Where the freshest thing is air? That's just about the whole campus."

"It can't be," Galinda said, dismayed.

"Okay, we can probably rule out the cafeteria and Suicide Canal. But there's still the rest of the campus." Elphaba took a moment to think. "Okay, let's try a different theory. Maybe whatever else is in that area is not fresh at all? What does that leave us with?"

Galinda shrugged helplessly.

"The bins?" Elphaba frowned.

"Ewww, it can't be! That is _so_ not romantic!"

"Well, have _you_ any suggestions?"

"…No."

"Then the bins it is. And if I'm not home by midnight, you'd better send someone out to look for my body."


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's**** Note:**** Here it is! The last chapter!  
><strong>

**Kudos to Elphabalover101 and Glitter-Bunni for picking up my favourite line! The Wizard Of Wicked...I was reading your review, all those lines, thinking you were going to pick it up...but no...it wasn't there. :( LOL Anyway, it was the very last line of the chapter.**

**But it's really great reading all the lines you guys like - and there are a lot more of them than I expected! :D**

**Exciting news! I got my tickets for the Anthony Warlow concert today! So excited! Just over four months to go...**

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 10:<strong>

Elphaba cautiously approached the university's bin area, glancing around for the man whom she was to meet…but there was no-one there. "Hello?" she called out quietly. "Is there anyone here?" There was no reply. "Look, I didn't tramp all the way out here looking like a clown for nothing." Silence. "Right, I'm going back to my dorm," Elphaba muttered to herself, "before I end up in these bins all chopped up." However, as she turned to leave, she noticed an envelope taped to one of the bins. With a sigh, Elphaba peeled off the envelope and opened it.

_My apologies for making you come here,  
>But you have too keen an ear –<br>You would have made the discovery  
>Before I was quite ready.<br>Now I have time on my side  
>(And I'm sorry I lied),<br>Go to your quiet spot  
>And tell me I am hot.<em>

"I will not!" Elphaba exclaimed. "I refuse! How can I say that when I have no idea who it is? Oh, just listen to me now – I'm talking to myself. I must be going mad." Elphaba closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. "If I go back to my room, Galinda will be upset with me. If I meet this guy…I could get mugged or murdered or… Oh, what the hell, I'll go. Somehow, I think Galinda's reaction would be worse than any fate I might face with this creep."

And with that, Elphaba spun on her heel and strode briskly across campus until she reached her 'quiet spot' – a beautiful old tree beside the bridge which arched gracefully over Suicide Canal.

There was no-one there.

"How can I follow these bloody instructions when he's not even _here_?" Elphaba burst out angrily. "I'm going back to my room." But she didn't move. Galinda was right; she had come this far already, so why give up now? "Maybe he got it wrong. Maybe he's waiting somewhere else. Then again, maybe he followed me." At the thought, a shiver crept up Elphaba's spine and she turned to see if there was anyone behind her. There wasn't. "If he's not here soon, I'm going."

Elphaba really couldn't say why she was still talking aloud. Perhaps it was so that this mystery writer could hear that she was there. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that she really was creeped-out over this whole thing and was just trying to reassure herself with some form of sound.

"I'm not going to wait long," she said warningly. "Can you hear me? Are you there?" Maybe he was there, but just wouldn't show himself until she followed the instructions. Grudgingly, she added, "You're hot."

At that moment, something floated down in front of her. Elphaba stooped to pick it up and saw it was yet another envelope. Suppressing a groan of frustration, she opened it and read the note.

_I'm glad you think so, if you really do.  
>Now I'll tell you what I think of you.<br>Beautiful, kind and caring are all words I'd use;  
>Intelligent and witty I would not refuse.<br>It's too late to be my Valentine,  
>But, nevertheless, will you be mine?<em>

Elphaba wasn't sure what to make of the note. It sounded so sincere, but it didn't sound like something that could be directed at her. She glanced up at the bridge, but she couldn't see anyone up there.

Suddenly, there came the sound of twigs crunching underfoot. Elphaba's head snapped back down and she squinted through the darkness at the other side of the bridge. A figure was approaching her. Elphaba swallowed, resisting the urge to flee.

Finally, the figure stopped a short distance away from her, but it was still far enough away that Elphaba couldn't make out anything other than it appeared to be a man.

Elphaba stared at the figure, waiting for him to move or say something. But he didn't. All was quiet.

After a few minutes, Elphaba became wary once again. She was just considering leaving when he finally spoke.

"I'm glad you came." His voice was soft and tender, and, suspicious as she was, it quite disarmed Elphaba.

Elphaba remained quiet, watching as he slowly began to move towards her once again.

"I trust you received all of my notes?"

Elphaba nodded. "Y-yes," she managed. "That is to say, I-I think I h-have."

"And have you figured out who I am?"

Elphaba hesitated, ashamed of herself in that moment. "I must confess that I haven't," she admitted.

The man let out a low, throaty chuckle. "Well, well, well. Who'd have thought I would ever outsmart the intelligent Elphaba Thropp?"

Elphaba bristled at that. "Look, just because I can't think of anyone who would seriously feel anything for me –" she began defensively, only to be cut off.

"You really don't think anyone would?" He stopped and cocked his head to the side. He seemed to be lost in thought for a moment as he considered her. "You thought this was a joke," he stated.

Elphaba's silence was all the confirmation he needed.

"It's not. I'm serious about this."

"Who _are_ you?" Elphaba whispered.

The man walked forward again and didn't stop until he was barely a metre from her – a place where what little light there was shone strategically onto his face.

Elphaba gasped.

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><p><span><strong>Author's Note:<strong>** Okay, if you want more, you're going to have to persuade me. I like reviews. *wiggles eyebrows*  
><strong>


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note:**** Okay, you convinced me. :P I think it was Moreanswers24 who did it. But seriously, 14 reviews on the one chapter...that is by far a new record for me, which means I have equalled the overall number of reviews on my previously most-reviewed story. Thankyou to everyone!  
><strong>

**Question: Have you been taking cliffy lessons from Maddy?  
>Answer: Why, um...*shuffles uncomfortably* Perhaps...<strong>

**The Wizard Of Wicked: I really love your reviews, and I'm so glad you liked that particular note!**

**Elphaba'sGirl: Because I can. ;P**

**PocketSevens: Um, I kind of have a confession...I didn't write what Boq actually did get Galinda...**

**Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: What are you complaining about? You already know how it ends! *rolls eyes* Honestly. Sisters. :P**

**Jasmine: Sorry about the cliffhangers, but...well...it is a mystery. :S But thankyou so much for your kind review and I'm glad you're liking the story even though cliffies aren't your thing. :)**

**Glitter-Bunnii: Hun, you make me laugh. :)**

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 11:<strong>

He smiled. The light glinted off his perfect, white teeth in such a way that made his face look that much more handsome. "Hello, Elphaba."

Elphaba stared at him in shock.

"Are you pleased to see me?"

"F-Fiyero?" Elphaba managed after a moment.

"That doesn't answer my question," he teased.

"What are you doing here?"

Fiyero rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "I thought that was pretty obvious."

"It was you all along?"

"Well, it wasn't a relay, if that's what you're thinking." Fiyero grinned.

"I mean –"

"I know what you meant. Yes, it was me all along."

"But _why_?" Elphaba asked in confusion.

"Did you get the flowers I sent you?" Fiyero asked instead of answering her.

"Yes."

"And you recall my first note?"

"Of course." Elphaba nodded.

"I asked you to go to the acacia tree."

"Where you had left me some lilacs."

"Purple ones. But you didn't work out my system."

"No, I didn't."

Fiyero led Elphaba over to a nearby bench and sat down, Elphaba following suit. "I thought it would be romantic to use floriography with cryptic notes."

Elphaba's eyebrows rose. "Floriography?"

"Flower meanings," Fiyero informed her.

"I read that purple lilacs mean 'first emotion of love'," Elphaba offered shyly.

Fiyero nodded. "They do. And acacias mean 'secret love'."

"Oh." Elphaba was silent for a moment, mulling this over in her head. "I did wonder if you were using the flowers' meanings, but we only discovered the whole idea not long before you were due to…pick me up."

"I hope you aren't too mad at me over that," said Fiyero. "As you can probably understand, I had no desire for Galinda to see me."

"About that…" Elphaba trailed off nervously. "Those roses you sent her…your way of breaking up with her?"

Fiyero scratched the back of his neck guiltily. "Uh…yeah. Did she" – he swallowed hard – "did she figure it out?"

"Yeah, she did. I tried to tell her that you probably just didn't realize what the flowers meant…but she didn't buy it." Elphaba grimaced. "It wasn't pretty. She suspected you were the one who had been writing the letters."

"Well, she was right."

"But she so easily could not have been. It could have been a co-incidence."

"But it wasn't. And she _was_ right."

"Why did you leave it so late in the game?" Elphaba asked. "Why not break up with her before if…if you really _did_…fancy me. Oz, that sounds so wrong. I'm not the type to be fancied."

"Yes, you are, Elphaba," Fiyero said firmly.

"Don't skate around the question."

Fiyero sighed. "I don't know, really," he admitted. "I wanted to be sure that you were at least interested before I did anything rash. And I felt guilty at the idea of breaking up with her on Valentine's Day."

"Hence the expensive gifts."

"Uh, yeah," Fiyero admitted sheepishly.

"Oz, I feel terrible," Elphaba groaned. "You broke up with her for me?"

"Yes. I love you."

"Fiyero, this is madness."

"Tell me afterwards."

Immediately, alarm bells went off inside Elphaba's head. "After what, exactly?"

"Nothing inappropriate, I promise. Just follow me." He stood and took Elphaba's hand.

Elphaba followed slowly as Fiyero led her to the other side of the bridge. As they approached the edge of the canal, Elphaba saw something sitting on the ground. After a moment, she realized it was a picnic basket. As they drew to a halt, Elphaba looked at Fiyero inquisitively. "A picnic?"

Fiyero nodded, looking slightly unsure of himself. "I hope you like it. I couldn't find out what you like without going directly to Galinda, so I had to think back to what you usually eat and…well, why don't you just have a look in there and see if it's okay?"

Curiously, Elphaba did so, smiling when she saw what the basket contained. "It looks lovely, Fiyero."

Fiyero smiled. "Good." The pair sat down on a blanket which had already been spread on the ground and Fiyero began to serve the meal.

"So, tell me what the other flowers mean," Elphaba said once they were settled and had begun to eat.

"Well," Fiyero began, "daffodils can mean many things, but in this instance, they stand for uncertainty, because I wasn't sure how you felt about me, and respect, because I do respect you, Elphaba. I really do. They also mean 'return my affection', as do jonquils. Angrek –"

"The white flowers, right?" Elphaba asked.

Fiyero nodded. "Right. They were intended as a clue to my identity."

"What do they mean?" Elphaba asked eagerly.

"They represent royalty," Fiyero told her. "Corny, I know, but I thought it fitting."

"That's why you said it was obvious," Elphaba said in understanding. "And the tulip-tree means something along the same lines, I suppose?"

"Kind of. It represents fame."

Elphaba laughed. "Very modest, aren't we?"

Fiyero shrugged. "What else was I supposed to do?" he asked laughingly. "Anyway, the _narcissus_ has two meanings, but the one I intended was…uh…'selfishness'."

That made Elphaba laugh harder. "That's nearer the mark."

"Well…not really," Fiyero said quietly, "but as far as everyone knows…yes, it is. But I'm not that way, really. I just act it."

Elphaba gave him a soft look. "I know."

Fiyero gave her a surprised glance. "You do?"

Elphaba nodded. "Of course. You're not happy, so you act happy. Therefore, it stands to reason that you act the opposite of how you really feel in every other respect."

Fiyero shook his head in amazement. "You, Miss Thropp, are a wonder."

There was a profound silence, which Elphaba broke after a moment. "What was with the wheat? As Galinda said, that wasn't exactly romantic."

"Believe it or not, wheat actually has a meaning. It means 'wealth and prosperity'."

"You again."

"Well…yeah."

"I must admit, that one had us confused," Elphaba said. "Galinda thought you must have been a farmer or at least someone from Munchkinland."

"Why do you keep mentioning Galinda?" Fiyero asked suddenly.

"Because she was trying to help me solve the mystery of the letter-writer," Elphaba replied.

"Uh. Awkward," Fiyero muttered.

"Best friend and roommate, remember? Of course it's going to be awkward. But you brought it on yourself," Elphaba pointed out. She sighed. "What about the other flowers?"

"The coreopsis?"

Elphaba nodded.

"'Always cheerful'."

"I see."

When Elphaba didn't say anything further, Fiyero prompted, "Well? Don't you think this was pretty clever of me?"

"I have to admit it was," Elphaba said, a small, unbidden smile tugging at her lips. "But I do have one question. No, make that two."

"What are they?" Fiyero asked.

"Why did you ask me to go to the courtyard after History? Was that supposed to be some kind of clue as well?"

"Yeah, it was," Fiyero confirmed.

"Well, I don't get that one," Elphaba admitted.

Fiyero gave a slight shrug. "The day I arrived – we met in the courtyard. If you recall, I was too late for History."

"Oh, I see. Well, that makes sense," Elphaba said as she mulled that over.

"What was your other question?" Fiyero asked curiously.

"The calligraphy. Did you do it yourself?"

"Do you think it was me?"

Elphaba paused. "I'm not sure," she admitted. "I've seen your everyday handwriting, and it's very sloppy – no offence," she hastily added. "But at the same time…it's almost as if that's how it's _meant_ to look. Trying-too-hard-to-look-sloppy handwriting, I suppose. I can't really picture you as a calligraphy-type person, but, somehow, it's not exactly that unbelievable. So, the short answer…I really don't know."

"Well, it _was_ me. I can't be bothered writing neatly for normal stuff," Fiyero told her, "but I've always loved the idea of calligraphy. So I studied it a few years ago. Only I've never had occasion to use it…until now."

Elphaba blushed, slightly flattered that it was on notes to her which Fiyero first used his skill.

"You know, I'm glad I asked that Galinda make you up for the night. You look even more stunning than usual," Fiyero said, bringing his hand up to brush his thumb lightly across Elphaba's cheekbone, effectively breaking the momentary silence which had fallen.

Elphaba blushed and averted her eyes. "Thanks."

"You still haven't told me how you feel about me."

"I don't know what to say," Elphaba murmured.

"Well, for starters, do you return my feelings?"

There was a slight hesitation before Elphaba gave an almost imperceptible nod. "Yes," she whispered.

Fiyero smiled. "I'm glad." Slowly, he leant down and captured Elphaba's lips in a soft, sweet kiss. "I love you, Elphaba Thropp."

"I love you, Fiyero Tiggular."

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><p><span><strong>Author's Note:<strong>** About the flower meanings...they may not be what everyone thought and may certainly not be correct because there are so many different version out there that I just used a table that was in the Wikipedia article for floriography...which had been removed when I checked back a couple of weeks later. But if they're wrong, just pretend that there are slight differences in Oz. Like how the Japanese have different meanings for flowers.**

**And don't worry, there IS more. :D**


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note:**** I have a confession to make...I just completely missed my own update deadline by about 27 hours without even realizing it...um...oops? 0:S Sorry about that. But here it is now, so please don't kill me.**

**One ****more chapter and the epilogue to go after this! Thanks to everyone for all the lovely reviews!  
><strong>

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 12:<strong>

"Well?" Galinda demanded as soon as Elphaba entered the room later on that night. "Who was it?"

Elphaba didn't reply. She simply turned and headed for the bathroom.

"Elphie!" Galinda screeched, bringing Elphaba to a halt. She bounced over and into Elphaba's face. "Tell me! Oooh, you're blushing! It must have been a good evening! So who was it?"

Elphaba bit her lip. She couldn't avoid this. Galinda would find out sooner or later. Elphaba sighed, unable to look her friend in the eye. "It…it was Fiyero," she said quietly.

The sound that escaped Galinda's lips was the most bloodcurdling scream Elphaba had ever heard. She was sure the entire town would burst into the room at any moment now. Elphaba had never heard anyone being murdered before, but she was quite sure the screams of a murder victim could never come close to this.

"_How could he do that to me? Why did it have to be him?"_

Elphaba put her hands up as if to defend herself from Galinda's wrath. "Look, Glin, I'm sorry, but it isn't my f–" Elphaba was cut off as a ceramic mug was suddenly hurled in her direction. Managing to duck just in time as the mug hit the wall behind her and shattered into smithereens, Elphaba stared wide-eyed at her roommate. "Glin, no, it's not worth it. I –" She covered her head as a plate followed in the mug's path.

"_I can't believe it! He didn't even have the decency to tell me!"_

Elphaba frowned in confusion. "I thought you said he broke up with you using the flowers?"

"I meant about his feelings for you," Galinda explained through gritted teeth. "But see? He didn't even have the courage to break up with me face-to-face!"

Cautiously, Elphaba offered, "At least he didn't two-time you. He _did_ break it off before he made his move. Well," she amended with a grimace, "before he made a _physical_ move."

Galinda looked at Elphaba. "That's true." Her words were surprisingly calm.

Elphaba eyed Galinda warily, feeling there was more to come.

"_But he could have damn well done it before Valentine's Day!"_ Galinda ranted, swinging her fist so wildly that it smashed into her bedpost. "OW!"

All concern for her own safety aside, Elphaba was up and at Galinda's side in an instant. "Are you alright, Glin?"

"_No, I'm not bloody well alright!_ My boyfriend just dumped me for my best friend, my fist is throbbing so much it feels like there's an Ozquake happening in there, and, to top it all off…I think I've broken a nail!" wailed Galinda dramatically, throwing herself face-down onto her bed.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "I don't think a broken nail is quite in the same league, Glin."

"What's the difference?" Galinda sniffled. "It's all bad. My life is ruined."

"I'm sorry," Elphaba whispered.

Neither girl spoke for a few minutes, and the only sound in the room was Galinda's sobs until they began to subside.

Finally, Galinda raised her tear-streaked face and looked at Elphaba. "I think I need to go to bed."

Elphaba nodded understandingly and moved away as Galinda went into the bathroom to change into her nightie. By now, Elphaba felt absolutely dreadful about the whole situation and wished she knew how to make amends.

Once Galinda had changed and settled herself into her bed, Elphaba got changed herself and cleaned off her make-up. However, before she could climb into her own bed, Galinda reached a hand out towards her.

"Elphie?"

Elphaba turned to face her face. "Yes, Glin?"

Galinda patted the edge of her bed, and Elphaba made her way over to sit where indicated.

"Was it romantic?"

Elphaba looked at Galinda warily.

"Well? Was it?"

"Yes, it was romantic," Elphaba replied quietly.

Galinda nodded. "And he said he loves you, right?"

Elphaba bit her lip, but her silence was all the answer Galinda needed.

"Did you receptivate?"

"Reciprocate? Uh, well…maybe I…feel the same way about him…but –"

"Did you kiss him?" Galinda interrupted.

"…Would you be mad if I did?"

Galinda thought for a moment, before shaking her head. "I guess not. Fiyero's the sort of guy no girl can refuse. Even you, Elphie."

As soon as Galinda said that, Elphaba groaned and put her head in her hands. "I thought I was immune to him. I thought I had managed to quash my feelings for him…but now he's gone and brought them all back to the fore. What is happening to me?"

Galinda sat up and gently rested her hand on Elphaba's arm. "You're being human, Elphie. That's all. It's no big deal."

"It is when I ruin my best friend's happiness because of it," Elphaba argued.

"It's not your fault," Galinda said firmly. "It was Fiyero who made the first move. I'm not blaming you."

"But you blame Fiyero," Elphaba murmured, looking up.

Galinda pulled at her lower lip with her teeth. "I don't want to go around blaming anybody," she said honestly after a moment of thought, "but I really can't answer that right now. Ask me again in the morning." She gave a small smile. "Thanks for being honest with me, Elphie."

Elphaba shrugged. "I kind of figured things would be worse if I kept this from you. I couldn't not tell you about this, and I didn't want it on my conscience. I treasure your friendship too much to allow anything like this get in the way." She paused. "We _are_ still friends…aren't we?"

Galinda's smile widened slightly. "Of course. Besties 'til the end."

Elphaba returned the other girl's smile. "Good. Now you try and get some sleep, okay?"

Galinda nodded as Elphaba stood, turned off the lights and slid into bed.

But as she tried to get to sleep, one thought kept going through Elphaba's head: _What happens next?_


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note:**** ...So I might be a teensy weensy little bit late again...like...thirteen hours? *ducks* I guess my other late update threw me...and, in my defence, I really really super ultra busy this morning...and then I got caught up in my work for my writing course for uni and...yeah, I'm sounding really lame, aren't I? Sorry. :S  
><strong>

**Okay, so this is the last proper chapter of this story! :O I can't believe I've already almost finished posting this! Only the epilogue to go! I totally cried while I was writing this chapter. And every time I read it back. I'm too emotional, I swear.  
><strong>

**I'm so glad everyone liked the broken nail part and the "besties 'til the end" line. I enjoyed writing those bits.  
><strong>

**Thanks to everyone for the great reviews, but LifeofPie...yours totally cracked me up. XD It really made my day when I read that, so thanks.**

**Alright, I'm probably talking too much and you're all saying, "Get on with it, Elizabeth!" - so I will.**

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><p><strong>CHAPTER 13:<strong>

When Elphaba awoke the next morning, she found Galinda sitting on her bed, a half-empty box on one side, a box of tissues on the other and numerous envelopes and other paraphernalia scattered around her.

"Glin?" Elphaba mumbled sleepily, sitting up and reaching for her glasses. "What are you doing?"

There was no reply, save for a tiny sniffle and the rustling of paper.

Elphaba swung her legs over the side of the bed and blinked a few times to bring Galinda into focus. "Glin," she tried again, "what are you doing?"

After a moment, Galinda finally looked up. "Oh, hi, Elphie."

"Hi. Now, are you going to tell me exactly what you're doing?"

"Hmmm? Oh, nothing much," Galinda replied absently. "I'm just going through some old things."

"'_Old'_ things?" Elphaba repeated in confusion, pointing to an object sitting on the bed. "But that's that teddy bear Fiyero gave you for…" She trailed off and her eyes widened as she looked at the other things Galinda had dug out of somewhere. "…Valentine's Day," she finished in realization. "Don't tell me you're getting rid of everything Fiyero gave you?"

Galinda shrugged. "I have no use for them anymore."

"But Galinda, you and Fiyero had a great relationship. Don't you want anything to remind you of the good times you had?" Elphaba asked.

"You mean what I lost," Galinda said bitterly, and Elphaba sighed, standing up and going to clear a space next to her friend so she could sit down.

"Glin…I know it didn't last and that's a shame, and I feel really bad about how it all happened, but…well, while ever it _did_ last, it was real." Elphaba forced Galinda to look into her eyes. "I know it was. Surely you don't want to throw everything away?"

Galinda looked away, her eyes filling with tears. Her voice sounded choked as she admitted, "I don't want to. But I _have_ to. I have to move on, and I can't do that while ever I've got all these reminders of him. It's going to be hard enough having to see him with you every single day, without making it worse for myself by keeping this stuff. Do you understand?" She met Elphaba's gaze again, willing her to understand.

Elphaba nodded and took Galinda's hand. "Yes, I understand. And I'm so sorry."

Galinda pulled Elphaba in for a hug. "Stop apologizing, Elphie. You have nothing to apologize for, okay? I'm not blaming you for anything."

"And Fiyero?" Elphaba asked hesitantly when Galinda finally released her.

Galinda hesitated. "I do blame him," she admitted, "just a little. I'm trying not to, but…I can't help it. But I've forgiven him," she added softly.

Elphaba was surprised. "You have? Already?"

"You see," Galinda explained, playing with Elphaba's hands, "I believe he really loves you. _Really_ loves you. I mean, what he did to try and win you over…that was the most romantic thing I've ever heard of. I don't know any guys who would do anything _near_ as romantic as that. But Fiyero did. And the fact that he didn't do anything like that for me – that he just asked me out, knowing I'd say yes – and seeing how hard he worked to get you to like him…well, maybe not that, exactly, but I suppose to capture your interest without frightening you off – or trying not to…oh, Oz, this is so hard to explain," Galinda cried, stumbling over her words.

"You're doing fine. Go on," Elphaba urged her gently.

"What I mean to say is, seeing all that…it proves to me just how much he loves you and how far he is willing to go to prove it. I can't see that and turn a blind eye. If he loves you that much, and you love him, too, then you belong together." She let out a small giggle. "I guess nothing can stop me from being a romantic!"

Elphaba smiled fondly at her friend and impulsively hugged her. "I love you, Glin. You're the best friend a girl could ever ask for."

Galinda burst into tears. "I love you, too, Elphie. I just want you to be happy."

Elphaba's own eyes misted up and she blinked quickly, trying to stop the tears from spilling down her cheeks.

After a long few minutes, the two girls pulled back and looked at each other. Galinda's eyes were red and her cheeks were streaked where tears had dried in their tracks. Elphaba's own eyes were still slightly moist, and she reached for a couple of tissues, handing one to Galinda. Both girls blew their noses at the same time, looked at each other, and promptly burst into giggles.

"Oz, we must look like a right pair," Elphaba commented as their laughter died down.

"Blubbering messes," Galinda agreed, before she stopped and looked at Elphaba curiously. "You know, I think this is the first time I've ever seen you cry."

Elphaba looked away, slightly embarrassed.

"Why _are_ you crying?" Galinda pressed. "I mean, I know why _I_'m crying, but what's your excuse?"

Elphaba shrugged. "I just can't believe I have a friend like you," she confessed quietly. "I never had a friend before I came to Shiz. I never thought anyone would _want_ to be my friend. But here…I found the best friend in existence" – she smiled at Galinda, who returned the gesture, showing her dimples – "and now I've got someone who cares for me. Loves me, even. For me to have found people who like me and take me for who I am…it means a lot to me. You'll never know how much it means."

Galinda squeezed Elphaba's hand. "Maybe I won't," she agreed, "but I understand. I'm really proud to have you as my bestest friend, Elphie, and I wouldn't have it any other way."

Elphaba snatched up another tissue and dabbed at her eyes. "Why must you be such a perfect friend?" she demanded with a smile. "You said you'd never seen me cry before. Well, I've cried plenty of times in my life…but never for a good reason."

"Well, now you have me!" Galinda giggled, throwing her arms up in the air.

Elphaba chuckled. "I do indeed. Thanks, Glin." She took a moment to compose herself, before glancing around her. "Well, we'd better get this stuff sorted, then. Where are you up to?"

Galinda picked up the envelopes she had set aside. "I was just reading these cards. All three of them. Birthday, Lurlinemas, Valentine's Day," she said, flicking through each card as she named the occasions.

"He only gave you three cards?" Elphaba asked, creasing her forehead.

"If you don't count the invitation to his Birthday party."

"Oh."

"See what I mean, Elphie?" Galinda asked. "He wrote you all those notes. He only ever wrote to me four times. You got eight notes in five days."

"Ten, actually," Elphaba interjected quietly. "There were another two after I left here last night."

Galinda acknowledged her friend's input. "Ten notes, then. It's you he really wants." She smiled. "And you deserve someone like Fiyero. Someone that amazing."

"Stop trying to make me cry!" Elphaba said, closing her eyes briefly. "Just because you managed it a couple of times already, doesn't mean it's going to become a regular thing, so stop pushing it."

Galinda grinned. "Sorry. But it's true."

"You just concentrate on your sorting," Elphaba instructed her friend.

Galinda glanced at the envelopes in her hand, before putting them into the box and picking up a small jewellery box. She sat there for a moment, staring at it and absentmindedly stroking it, then opened it and took off a gold ring with a small, pink stone. She put the ring inside the box and closed it, squeezing her eyes shut at the same time and holding it to her chest.

Elphaba watched on silently until Galinda opened her eyes and put the box with the cards. "That wasn't what I think it was, was it?"

Galinda shook her head sadly. "No. I used to pretend it was an engagement ring…but it wasn't. Truthfully, I don't think he meant it as even a friendship ring. It was just pretty piece of jewellery he knew I would like. Expensive, but that's all it was."

Elphaba was quiet as she began to go through a pile of random papers – flyers, tickets, et cetera – though she kept her eye on Galinda as the other girl said goodbye to several other pieces of jewellery and a number of photographs.

Lastly, Galinda reached for the teddy bear. The bear received one last cuddle and kiss before Galinda sat it gently in the box.

"You're not getting rid of that, are you?" Elphaba asked a bit sharply.

Galinda looked at her in surprise. "Yes, why?"

"Well…I don't know. I just thought you might like to keep him. He's very cute."

"I've been thinking about this," Galinda said, "and I've come to the conclusion that he was more of a consolation present than an 'I-love-you-and-want-to-be-with-you' present. I don't want anything like that. He's going."

"That's a shame," Elphaba said.

"Would you like to have him?" Galinda offered.

Elphaba shook her head. "No, I'm not a cuddly-toy sort of person."

"You're right. I wouldn't want someone else's meaningless cast-offs, either."

"That's not what I –"

"I know," Galinda interrupted Elphaba's protests, "but it's true. That wasn't very thoughtful of me. Sorry." She stood up and looked down at the box. "Well, that's it. Every last reminder of –" Galinda's voice caught in her throat and she couldn't go on.

Elphaba squeezed Galinda's hand in an attempt to comfort her friend. She tactfully stayed quiet for a few moments before asking, "What are you going to do with them?"

Galinda paused halfway through picking up the box. "I – I don't know," she said in realization. "I hadn't exactly thought that far ahead…" She paused. "Maybe I'll just put all the photos and paper stuff in the bin and take everything else to the charity shop."

Elphaba nodded, standing as well. "That's sweet, Glin. I still don't know how you can part with that bear, but if it gives you a fresh start, then I'm happy. I'm happy you can move on and put all this behind you. And most of all, I'm happy you're still my friend." Elphaba gave Galinda a quick squeeze as she made her way into the bathroom. "Are you going down to the charity shop now, then?"

"Yes, I…I think I will," Galinda murmured absently.

When Elphaba emerged from the bathroom five minutes later, Galinda was back to sitting on the bed, staring vacantly out the window.

"I thought you were going to the charity shop?" Elphaba asked with a frown.

"Hm?" Startled out of her thoughts, Galinda looked around at her friend. "Oh, yes. I am. Soon."

"Oh. Well, I'm just going out. See you later."

As soon as Elphaba left the dorm, Galinda took all of the photos, cards and paper out of the box and set them aside to go in the bin later on. She then went and found a pen and some sticky tape. With one last look inside the box, she closed the flaps and sealed them with the tape, before proceeding to write something on the top.

_For Elphie and Fiyero's children._


	14. Epilogue

**Author's Note:**** This is it! The end of the story. Wow. I had such a fun journey in writing this, but you guys all made the posting of it that much better! This story broke all of my previous records for reviews. I want to say a big THANKYOU to everyone who read, faved, followed or reviewed - you seriously have no idea how much it means to me.  
><strong>

**I also just want to send a quick shout-out to my twin for not only being my first-ever 100TH reviewer (wuv you!), but for helping me finish the story simply by reading what I'd already written and telling me what she liked. Thanks, Maddy! 3**

**So this is really it. I can't believe we're already to this point, and I kind of don't want it to end! But it must, so it shall. The good news, though (at least, I hope it is), is that I have a sequel in the works. It's likely to be months before I finish it, as I have a couple of other stories that are a priority right now (not to mention I now have uni to consider), but I'm really excited about it.**

**Anyway, enough of the rambling. One last THANKYOU to everyone, and this little epilogue. I shall see you all for the next ride (hopefully)! :)**

**Elizabeth. xx**

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><p><strong>EPILOGUE:<strong>

Elphaba found Fiyero wandering around in the courtyard. She stood there, just watching him quietly for a moment, until he turned around.

As soon as he caught sight of Elphaba, Fiyero strode over to her and took her in his arms, greeting her with a deep kiss which left both of them quite breathless.

"Good morning," Fiyero whispered, brushing a stray strand of hair away from Elphaba's face.

Elphaba smiled softly and wrapped her arms around Fiyero's neck. "Is this how you're going to greet me every morning?" she teased.

"It seems like a good idea," Fiyero replied with a grin. His grin soon faded, however, when he remembered that there may still be a slight problem with him getting together with Elphaba.

"Fiyero? What is it?" Elphaba asked as Fiyero pulled away and put his hands in his pockets.

Fiyero grimaced. "How, uh…how did Galinda take it?"

Elphaba sighed and sat down on a nearby bench. "You know how I said her reaction wasn't pretty when she figured out the notes and flowers must have come from you?"

"Worse?" Fiyero guessed.

"Much worse. She smashed a mug, a plate and her fist; screamed her lungs out; cried her heart out; and nearly killed me to top it all off. Don't worry," Elphaba reassured him as he screwed up his face guiltily, "she's over it now. She's forgiven you and is quite happy for us to be together."

"Should I believe that?" Fiyero asked doubtfully.

"Actually, yes. I know Galinda when she's just saying things, and this was genuine." Elphaba smiled. "She really thinks we belong together."

Fiyero smiled as well. "I'm glad. Because I think we belong together, too."

"So...does this mean we're…?" Elphaba asked shyly, biting her lip.

"If you would like to."

Elphaba nodded. "I would like that a lot."

"Good." Fiyero pulled Elphaba up and kissed her again.

"Just one question," Elphaba said as they broke apart.

"What's that?"

"Are you going to continue to use floriography?"

"Well, I do kind of like the idea…" Fiyero admitted.

"Then perhaps you'd better teach me some more about it," Elphaba suggested.

Fiyero grinned as he leant in for yet another kiss. "I would love to."

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><p><span><strong>Disclaimer:<strong>** I DO NOT own any of the characters mentioned in this story; they belong solely to L. Frank Baum and Gregory Maguire. I DO, however, own the story itself, and it is protected in my name under Australian Copyright Law dating back to 2013. **


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